Anyone who drives a car in Des Moines has dealt with auto insurance at some point. For many Iowa drivers, however, their insurance coverage is not something they spend a great deal thinking about–at least until they are injured in a car accident. Only then do they realize their insurance policy may not be as helpful as they had thought.
At Ball, Kirk & Holm, P.C., we deal with auto insurance companies on a daily basis. Obviously, when our client has been injured by a negligent driver, we negotiate with that driver’s insurance company to seek compensation. But in many cases we are also dealing with our client’s own auto insurance company. This is because most drivers do not carry enough liability coverage to fully compensate an accident victim. This brings the victim’s insurance carrier into the picture if they have uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage.
Do You Know What Insurance You Have?
You might be wondering: Do I even have uninsured and/or underinsured motorist coverage. Even if you do, you may not be exactly sure what that is or why you are paying for it each month. To help explain all this, let’s break down exactly how auto insurance works in Iowa.
First and foremost, if you drive a car in Des Moines or anywhere else in Iowa, state law requires you carry an insurance policy that provides a minimum amount of liability coverage. Basically, liability coverage is insurance that protects you in the event that you cause an accident. Say you accidentally rear-end the driver in front of you because you were tailgating. Your liability coverage would then pay the driver if they are injured or sustained any damage to their car.
As of 2025, Iowa’s liability coverage requirements are as follows:
- $20,000 for bodily injury or death to one person in a single accident;
- $40,000 for bodily injury or death to two or more people in a single accident; and
- $15,000 for damage or destruction to someone else’s property in a single accident.
Again, it is critical to emphasize these are minimum liability coverage requirements. You are free to purchase higher coverage amounts. And it is often a good idea to do so as it provides you with additional protection in the event you cause an accident.
When the Other Driver’s Insurance Is Not Enough
Of course, many Des Moines-area drivers only carry the minimum required amount of liability coverage. And some drivers are simply not covered at all. That’s not to say that every uninsured driver is intentionally taking a risk by breaking the law. In many cases, drivers unknowingly allow their policies to expire because they forgot to make a monthly premium payment.
Unfortunately, auto insurance companies are sticklers for the rules. And if they are not legally required to cover an accident, they won’t. So many Des Moines car accident victims quickly learn that the driver who hit them had no liability coverage in force at the time of their crash.
This is where uninsured (UM) and underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage can prove essential. Unlike your liability coverage, your UM and UIM coverage pays you, or someone else insured under your policy, if you are hit by someone else. UM coverage applies when there is no available liability coverage from the negligent driver who caused your accident. This can be for two reasons. Either the driver had no coverage in effect when the accident occurred, or the driver who caused the crash is simply unknown to you. Put another way, if you are struck by a hit-and-run driver who leaves the scene and is never identified, that unknown driver is considered an “uninsured motorist” for purposes of your UM coverage.
UIM coverage, in contrast, is for car accidents where the negligent driver has coverage, but it is simply not enough to fully compensate all of the accident victims. This is a more common situation than you may realize. Keep in mind, most drivers only purchase the minimum required amount of liability coverage, which as noted above is just $40,000 for bodily injury or death to two or more persons in a single accident.
Consider a scenario where you are driving a car carrying three other passengers. Another vehicle runs a red light and plows into your car, injuring all four of you. Assuming the negligent driver only has the minimum liability coverage required in Iowa, that means there is only $40,000 available to cover all of the medical bills and other losses incurred by you and your passengers. If you have UIM coverage, however, that would become available to you (and the other people who were in your car) once you exhausted the other driver’s liability coverage.
Now, odds are you already have both UM and UIM coverage if you have a standard Iowa auto insurance policy with liability coverage. Iowa law requires insurers to offer UM and UIM coverage with all such policies. If you do not want UM and/or UIM coverage for any reason, then you must explicitly reject it in writing, typically by signing a form provided by your insurance company.
Some people do turn down UM/UIM coverage because it can save them a few dollars each month on their auto insurance premiums. This can be a very shortsighted move, however, especially if you are ever injured in a car accident. If anything, you should purchase as much UM/UIM coverage as you think you can afford. By default, UM and UIM coverage mirrors the amount of liability coverage you purchase. But again, you are always free to buy more.
Contact a Des Moines Car Accident Lawyer Today
Even when you have purchased as much auto insurance as you think you may need, problems can still arise when it comes to getting the insurer to pay following an accident. This is where an experienced Des Moines car accident attorney can help. Contact Ball, Kirk & Holm, P.C., today at 319-419-4279 to schedule a free consultation. We have offices in Waterloo and Iowa City. We are also available 24/7 and can travel to meet our clients when circumstances require.